Wait For Me

One thing I forgot to mention yesterday was our Wait for Me event on Saturday. Around 450 children elected to attend the concert at King of Kings church where the message of sexual abstinence was clearly told. It is Living Hope’s firm belief that sexual abstinence (before a Biblical marriage) alone can stop the spread of HIV and AIDS in South Africa and the world. We had a number of dramas and songs, African dancing and generally a great time. At the end one of the volunteers told her story of premarital sex and its consequences, for her pregnancy and then an abortion, to demonstrate the importance of abstinence to the children. They were spellbound by her message and over 100 went forwards for prayer and counselling afterwards. This was a fantastic response but revealed more than ever before the reality of the situation. Of those who went forwards over 10 (all girls) had been raped by strangers or family members, all bar a few asked for prayer for family situations and 4 said they had been or were pregnant. This saddened our hearts but in a strange way we are pleased we now know children by name and their situation so we can respond directly and personally to them in the coming months and years. For me,

I am so proud of the children from Redhill who went forwards and more widely for those who committed to attend the concert by their own choice even in the face of fierce taunting from their friends back home.

Do pray for the kids who came, that they would have fully received and understood the message we taught and they would indeed commit to the abstinence pledge we offered them too.

The final stretch

So my time here seems to be disappearing fast which is sad. That said, I have been so thankful for all of God's goodness to me over these last few months in leading me to South Africa and sustaining me out here too. I have made many friends and feel like I have made a difference in the childrens' lives especially. My hope and prayer is that some of what I have started and continued will be fruitful in the months and years to come.

This week just gone was especially busy and I imagine my last week will be too. Tying up the loose ends and starting some new projects kept me busy but as always it was very enjoyable. Many of the other volunteers have now gone which leaves a quieter house with only 3 of us left; I have made 4 trips to the airport in the last 4 days!

Last week I had the priviledge of spending an evening at Mzo's house in Redhill. I was primarily pleased to have more than just a few minutes with him and we talked for some hours about the various benefits and drawbacks of living in Cape Town, especially the diverse cultures living on the peninsula. Later on, as expected, it got pretty cold so, although my mini sleeping bag was reasonable, the uneven floor and blowing wind prooved a little much in terms of decent sleep. Definitely an eye-opener and I am so glad we were able to spend the time together seeing as his evenings are very quiet. This little trip also gave us an idea, that good as it is for Mzo to generously give away some of his belongings to others who have less even than him, we wanted to get him some items for his house. Consequently Kendra, Hannah and I went shopping for him and bought a new sofa, chair, table, plates, bowls, glasses, mugs, slippers, cutlery and a bargain heater. Having done a mini makeover when he was out of his house we brought him back to our gifts and watched him smile like never before as he walked through the door. This along with the house we recently made really demonstrated for me how easily we rely on the many many things we own and take them for granted. The little English boys, aged 4 and 2, that we know take plates and water for granted and yet Mzo, 32, was ecstatic to receive them. Praise God we had the opportunity to do something for him!

So it seems I will be seeing most of you quite soon which will be good. Its a shame I have to leave next Saturday but good timing too. I look forward to hearing about what you have been up to....

Muchos love

Stuart

Friday

So it has once again been a busy week here!

Dad has been working on a set of shelves for Vusi, a Living Hope staff member who makes candles and wireworks, so he can display his works in his shop rather than on the benches he makes them on! Dad fairly quickly finished this project which has made a massive difference to the shop. Furthermore, Dad painted the walls to bring out the silver wire contrast so it would be easier for visitors to notice. As if that wasn't enough, Dad has been especially helpful talking through the emergency planning material I have been working on. As I hope is clear, I have been working the parents hard this week!

Mum has joined me each day in Redhill for kids club where we delivered teaching on sex abuse. It has been tough to find the correct balance between educating the children on the areas of sex and abuse whilst trying not to teach details to young children that perhaps they shouldn't know or be told! Mzo has done a wonderful job finding the balance by teaching 'good touch' and 'bad touch' so the children are aware of what is good and what's not.

We have also finally managed to finish the Redhill house which is wonderful, just the door lock to fix and then its all sorted. I hope to organise an event/handover to the new tenant sometime soon so she can move in. Myself Brennon and Chelsea mixed concrete late into the night thursday but it set well so has provided a warmer and dry floor to the property.

Today Mum Dad and I took a long tour around much of the peninsula! We saw the team house at Nordhoek beach and then headed round the famous Chapman's Peak Drive where many car adverts are shot. Its a beautiful landscape where the Atlantic ocean splashes up on the steep slopes with the thin road cutting through the hill with the high cliffs tight to the tarmac. We headed further round past Hout bay, where most of the English ex-pats live, and then towards Signal Hill which overlooks the city. We decided to walk up Lions Head which takes around 1.5 hours and then went to a local market briefly. The top of lions head is a stunning view, Robben Island, Bloubergstrand, the city, Table Mountain and the Atlantic too. A fantastic day out although very tiring so looking forward to sleeping now!

I hope to upload more of the recent photos soon so do keep and eye out for them, please also let me know what you are doing!!!! I received one email from you all last month telling me whats going on for you and would like to know a little more! Look forward to hearing from you :)

speak soon

stuart

Still alive!

Wow, this has got to be the third or fourth time I have had to apologise for not being more in touch!! Sorry.

Anyway, as can now be verified by the parents, its has continued to be rather busy out here which is a great blessing if tiring too! Mum and Dad have been here one week and have one more left, I am working them hard but we are also enjoying some family and tourist time too!
While I remember, the official number of children for our big football, netball and craft day now stands at 675 which is fantastic. We are all so thankful to God for his provision of many volunteers and opportunities that allowed us to run the event.

Since the 9th July the normal routine of afternoon kids clubs has started again which has been great now we know the children a little better having had the world cup teaching time with them. That said, our first life skills topic to teach was sex abuse which was a minefield to navigate. Unfortunately it is a real problem in Redhill and across the peninsula but the main challenge was to consider what level we taught at. Some children don’t know what sex is, others have much more knowledge of it. Talking to a 13 year-old girl today highlighted the problem, as she didn’t seem to link periods and pregnancy so assumed that, although she had started puberty, she could have sex and not fall pregnant. Stories and conversations like this really remind us of the scale of problem we are facing but also show how valuable our lessons and teaching is.

In contrast, one girl, aptly named lisakanya (which means ‘there is light’ in the context of a dark world) signed up to the Living Hope Wait For Me pledge. Wait For Me is the main program of teaching which explains that sexual abstinence before Biblical marriage is the ONLY way to ensure that HIV and AIDS is prevented and stopped. Part of the scheme invites children and adults from across the peninsula to sign the pledge of abstinence from sexual activity before marriage. Fair to say that not too many from Redhill have historically signed up to the message so seeing Lisakanya ask for the pledge slip was a great blessing. Living Hope continues to be at the front of HIV and AIDS prevention and our prayer is that we would see the illness eradicated from South Africa by the end of this generation.

On a similar tone, a chap from a local township is proposing raising funds for Living Hope’s Prevention work by walking from Cape Town to Johannesburg, some 1860km! More to come on this soon once we sort out the details and routes/logistics/food/healthcare……….exciting times though even if it is a crazy idea.

Do look out for house photos on Picasa soon, the volunteers came together to make a new house for a lady in Redhill after her one burnt down a couple of weeks ago. It has been a great time to work together and enjoy the translation difficulties with some locals helping us too. That said, we hope to finish it all tomorrow and hand over the keys.

My time here is swiftly moving through which is sad in many ways as I have really enjoyed the activities and relationships I have built here. That said, come August 7th it will be about the right time to head back to you all and encourage YOU to go somewhere and serve God in the way I have been privileged to do here. For now, my bed calls as I was hoping to get some good rest tonight but as midnight approaches once more it seems I failed!

Love to you all

Stu.
p.s. no photos here cos the internet is as slow as a slug but there will be some on picasa soon...

Monday!

What a busy day! We have been clearing many different rooms at the offices as much of the equipment or materials are in the wrong place. Today was officially a day off for the volunteers but it was good to be involved in ministry work even if not with any children. The whole place looks much better organised now so our work was well received.

The last few weeks here promise to be very busy indeed with more kids clubs and the morning schedule starting up again with preschool and support groups too. There are also many changes to Living Hope personnel occuring right now so its definitely a dynamic time where communication is key!

I have much more to say, and I will do, but right now only got a few minutes on this computer so must stop here. Still really enjoying my time here and continuing to get very involved in the various ministries!

Speak soon and I will upload some more photos and videos asap

stu

Fish Hoek High School

Wow what a day! We had over 700 (still waiting for the official count) children on one site for 5 hours this morning playing football, netball and a variety of crafts. Having spent the last 3 weeks preparing for the event, it was really special to see it unfold infront of us! There were football games and tournaments happening for Under 17s, 15s, 13s, 11s and 9s and the same for netball if in a smaller area. On the craft field there were circus skills and centre games, a Bible quiz challenge, 2 locals who did a painting and drawings ministry, a drama group and dance group.

The theme of the day was from Psalm 37 verse 5, the Rimmer paraphrase of which reads, Trust God for everything and he will help you; its easier for the kids to remember that way! I was MC-ing from the front which was interesting trying to speak to the children in xhosa, afrikaans and English but seemed to work reasonably well. We also had the local Christian radio station broadcasting from the site which really added to the atmosphere. We really hope to do the event again as it was a huge success.

Now I have a couple of days free which is very exciting indeed as the last few nights have been crazy busy preparing for the event today. I think much sleep catching up is needed and a few thoughts for the next few weeks as Mum and Dad are coming on Thursday to join me for 2 weeks (better clean up my room!)

Will upload some more photos soon!

Football!

Lots to tell you all about but not enough memory space to recall what has been going on! To make a long story very much shorter, we are now in the last week of Holiday Club which in Redhill means a lot of football. A travelling Brazilian team has joined us to run the sessions and we have greatly enjoyed joining in and being part of it all.
In line with the football theme, I have attached an especially flattering photo of me on the way to the England game in PE!


Having returned from PE we did a whole week teaching about loving our neighbours as ourselves and attempting to make the Redhill kids a little bit compassionate and caring towards their friends. To some degree this has worked as we are seeing many kids share and help each other out in this week's program. That said, the fighting, swearing and general rule of the older boys remains, all of which is hard to control or stop.

To continue in the seemingly 'extreme' sports that I have been doing the last few weekends, I went shopping last Saturday in Cape Town at the main market. Wierdly, on stopping at a stall someone very quickly becomes your 'best friend' and maintains complete composure whilst offering you his 'best price'. What was strange for me is at this juncture no normal price had been set so how a 'best price' could be achieved I didn't know. Anyway, after fraught bargaining a deal was then set and we moved on with some new sports merchandise or a painting. It was great to be part of the downtown atmosphere with the football in the evening and the market experience comes well recommended!

This week, as mentioned, it has been sports time and we have been very blessed teaching the boys more football skills and the girls netball. On Thursday we are handing out the shoes as part of the Samaritan's Feet schedule and Friday is the big event at Fish Hoek.

For now, I leave you with a couple of photos of the past couple of weeks that have encouraged and amused me!

Speak soon

Stu